"Compose the picture" puzzles, such as jigsaw puzzles, have long been some of the most popular types of puzzles. These puzzles traditionally involve cutting an image into pieces and then randomly mixing them. The puzzle is solved when the player has positioned the pieces so that the original image is reconstructed. These types of puzzles can be implemented in a paper or board format as well as on the computer.
In one computerized implementation of a "compose the picture" puzzle, the player repeatedly swaps the position of two pieces until the image is accurately represented to the player. When the two pieces are swapped, the computer is able to display a new configuration of the pieces to the player.
In another computerized implementation of the "compose the picture" puzzle, a single piece is left out so that a piece may be shifted to an empty position. The player repeatedly shifts different pieces of the puzzle into the position left empty until the image is accurately represented to the player.
Successful image puzzles rely on an appropriate "discovery factor." The discovery factor is the point in time when a seemingly chaotic group of puzzle pieces becomes recognizable as the target image. In standard analog image puzzles, jigsaw puzzles for instance, the discovery factor is effected by a number of play variables: image content, orientation, position, and the number of puzzle pieces. Computer puzzles may introduce play variables which are impossible to modify in the analog world, such as aspect ratio and scale. These play variables must be properly balanced when implementing a "compose the picture" puzzle on a computer so that the puzzle is not too easy, nor too difficult to solve. Mismanagement of the play variables in computer-based "compose the picture" puzzles can also result in an obscured discovery factor and a frustrating play experience. For instance, altering both the scale and the orientation of the puzzle pieces may lead to a puzzle which is frustrating to play. Previous computer-based "compose the picture" puzzles have, therefore, not permitted the altering of both of these play variables. Moreover, because previous computer-based "compose the picture" puzzles have not permitted altering the orientation of the puzzle pieces, they have not permitted solution of the puzzle in any orientation other than the initial one. There is, therefore, a need for a computer-based "compose the picture" puzzle which uses both scale and orientation as play variables, but which provides an appropriate discovery factor and permits solution of the puzzle in a multitude of orientations.
Computer-based "compose the picture" puzzles must also be solvable more quickly than analog puzzles. Computer-based puzzle players are simply unwilling to sit in front of a computer arranging a puzzle for hours on end like they might with a traditional jigsaw puzzle. Players may also not have a long period of time to spend playing the puzzle in order to reach a solution. This need to shorten the time for recognition and completion of the puzzle is especially necessary in the realm of on-line gaming. In on-line gaming, games may be played over networks such as the Internet and the World Wide Web. Play time, therefore, must be minimized to keep the player interested and to reduce on-line charges and computing resources. One way of accomplishing this is to reduce the number of puzzle pieces. Too few pieces, however, often results in a puzzle which is too easily solved. The need to shorten playing time, therefore, must be carefully balanced with the need to maintain an adequate level of challenge and pleasure for the player.
There is, therefore, a need for a system for composing an image within a computerized "compose the picture" puzzle (1) which can be solved in a relatively short period of time while still providing an intriguing challenge to the player, (2) which is visually stimulating for the player, (3) which manipulates both scale and orientation of the image fragments without obscuring the discovery factor, (4) which allows the puzzle to be solved in multiple orientations, (5) which allows the player to recognize the visually distorted image fragments, and (6) which can be played with just a few pieces while still providing a challenging play experience.